Where Memories Lay
by AstroNovaly
Summary: In the sweet old land of Calamari County, there's no one who wants some peace and quiet more than Lance Splatterson, a special squid with a knack for being where he shouldn't be at. But when disaster strikes, connections are made, it's up to him to stand up and lead the way. With danger around every corner, let the curtains rise for an odd inkling taking up the mantle of: Agent 3!
1. The Legend Starts

**This is my first story, so I'd appreciate criticism! I really love Splatoon and the fanfics people made for it, so I decided to try it out myself! I hope to make new chapters at least once a week or so.**

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**-**The morning rays shone throughout the clear windows of Calamari County, known for being the birthplace of the ever-so-popular Squid Sisters: Callie and Marie.

This would've been a peaceful start to my day, if it weren't fo-

"LANCE, DEAR! BREAKFAST IS READY!"

-well, if it weren't for that.

"Okay mom, I'll be down in a minute!"

And with that reply, I got out of bed.

Hello, I'm Lance Splatterson. And I'm just an average Inkling that just wants to rest once in a while.

But look, it isn't like I wake up late, okay?

Compared to most other Inklings, I get up pretty early every single day. It's just that my family has, to put it simply, high expectations.

And, naturally, those expectations were aimed at me.

Don't get me wrong, the last thing I want to do is betray said expectations, but it's pretty hard to meet them when you're constantly compared to the massive prodigy that is my sister.

With her mastery of switching forms at the age of 10, she's become fluent in about 300 ways of being superior to me in the short amount of time she's been training. Armed combat, CQC, mathematical expertise, stealing my wallet, you name it.

Even now she's training at Mount Nantai, honing her skills to once again impress her- ah, _our_, parents.

They suggested that she join the County Police Force, where she could use her talents to help out with protecting our home, but I'm sure she's aiming for a quite different future:

_Turf Wars._

Despite everything everyone (see: parents) tells her, she still clings to such so-called "trivial" matters. I can see why she'd go for such a plan. Who wouldn't want to get to play awesome matches, make new and exciting (sometimes salty) friends, and all around be happy and have fun, and _still_ get paid for it?

But my parents don't take her thought process all too well, and still press her to go for being an officer for obvious parental reasons.

Doesn't really help that I'm a bit of a let-down compared to her overwhelming talents and whatnot. I guess skill doesn't run in the family, or my blood, at least.

I mean sure, I've gone through training a couple of times, but I'm still probably below average compared to your standard Inkling. Being the older sibling, I probably should've shown more dedication, but I'm probably not made for things like that, at least not as much as my sister is.

To be honest, I pretty much don't care about those matters, I just want my peace and quiet for once, rather than being constantly compared, pressured, and having to be the object of yet again more disappointment.

But, oh well, it seems like Cod has some other plans for me.

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**And so there's the first chapter! It's a little short since it's just an introduction of sorts, but it's all I could come up with. See you guys next time!**


	2. Class is in Session

Chapter 2: Class is in Session

**Hi guys, I'm back! I decided to bring out another chapter, since I couldn't sleep tonight. I have a basis in my head for the first few chapters, but from then on it's all just building up the story from there. Feedback, criticism, and reviews are always appreciated.**

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****As I walked down the stairs, I felt a disturbance in the universe.

And, glancing at the dining table, the disturbance was eating her breakfast. I tried to sneak away, but she caught my movement and waved at me.

"Lance, heyo! How's my favorite brother? Inquired my impertinent sister.

_Cod, _I contemplated, _out of all the stinging days she could choose to come back, why today?_

I gave out a sign, which prompted a confused look on her face.

"Anything wrong?"

_Or any day, for that matter._

"Nothing, Luna. And I'm your _only_ brother." I replied.

"Of course you are! Can't you enjoy a little tease once in a while rather than being a little grumpyfish about it? I mean, it's been months since we last saw each other, aren't you glad to see me?" she responded.

"Yeah, yeah. Welcome back, _Lulu_. How was Mount Nantai?"

The moment I said 'Lulu', she took on a shocked expression on her face, but quickly regained her composure. She always hated her old nickname, for some reason.

"…Thank you. It was _ great_."she said with a monotone voice, with a hint of bitterness mixed in.

"'_Can't you enjoy a little tease once in a while rather than being a little grumpyfish?_" I mocked back.

She gave out a low grumble, and went back to eating her breakfast. Maybe I went a little too far with the jokes.

I think my mom got annoyed, because she abruptly put down her spoon and fork and opened her mouth. "Sit down, Lance. You still have to eat and go to school, so be quick about it."

I stared for a moment, before sitting down next to Luna and eating my breakfast.

"Make sure to bring home some good grades, Lance! Enjoy your school!"

"Thanks, mom. I know."

I waved back to her, silently regretting pretending to be enthusiastic about going to school. Maybe if I fake being sick, I could shave a few days for some rest. Probably not.

"Cya Lance! This time, makes some friends for once, okay?" joked Luna, with a smirk on her face.

"Yeah, Lulu, I will. Mind if you passed me my thermos?" I asked.

She looked in the direction I pointed to, and went towards the thermos. She hesitated for a moment, but then grabbed it.

"Here, catch!" She proceeded to throw it at an incredible velocity. If I hadn't caught it in time it probably would've indented the wall, and repairs would've put an even _bigger_ dent in our bank accounts than the thermos.

"Good Cod, Luna. You should've just handed it over, instead of launching it like a cannonball!" I yelled back.

"Sorry!"

And with an exasperating sigh, I set off for school.

* * *

"Cel, buddy! Great new start for school, eh?"

At the grand entrance for Calamari Academy for Special Squids, my acquaintance Riel stood there with a dopey grin on his face. He calls me "Cel", which is indeed a stupid nickname for starters. Even with all my bitter remarks, he still sticks with me for some reason.

"Greetings, Riel. And do tell why you're still here, waiting for me yet again?"

"Why not? Aren't these things are what friends are for?"

Sometimes, I really wonder with this kid.

"Just get a move on, Rye. We still have a class to attend to."

"Oh, right!" and with that hasty reply, he dashed off.  
_Guess I have to attend classes too, huh. _I thought, and sprinted towards the classroom.

"Alright, Inklings! Today's a fresh start for the year, so you better squid up and listen closely! We're starting all the way back- back to the Great Turf War. Do any of you shrimps actually remember your previous lessons on it?" our history teacher yelled.

No one gave a response.

"Well, looks like we have to run through it _again_ since none of even bother to give a damn about the topic anyway!"

Everyone gave out a groan.

"Take out your books and flip to page 24, and read up on the timeline of events. I'm giving a generous amount of time, say, 10 minutes. We'll have a quiz about this on Friday, so better actually care about your education for a moment! Your time starts… now!"

And with the signal given, we all raced to memorize each tid-bit of information told in the book, as most of us remember a grave experience of having neglected studying and getting a quiz from _this_ teacher.

I turned to the next page, already absorbing the redundant texts given every single year. Even though we have this as a major topic, I haven't seen a single squid actually learning from this. No one even remembers what the Octarian forces did anymore, or what started this entire thing in the first place.

I felt someone tapping my shoulder, so I looked behind me and saw Riel trying to get my attention.

"What do you want now Rye?" I questioned.

He looked around with shifty eyes, before replying "Say, Cel, mind if I borrow your book for a moment?"

"What? No! I have to study up too, okay?" I exclaimed.

"Cmon, I know you already have all this info somewhere in that mysterious yet clever mind of yours, so let me have a chance to learn too!"

I gave out a small sigh, and secretly handed him my book. He was actually right, for once. After giving it to him, he pulled out a thumbs-up and began reading like a madman on too much caffeine. I looked back at my desk and reached for my sketchpad fro underneath it, but I could only feel air.

"Looking for this?" A voice said beside me.

I shifted my gaze to the right, and saw a smiling girl waving what looked to be my sketchpad to me, with menacing red eyes and purple tentacles.

I mentally slapped myself, and regained my focus.

"Err…I think that's mine." I simply stated.

She look confused for a second, before giving an elegant giggle.

"Oh, _really_? Last time I remembered, Lance Splatterson couldn't draw a spoon to save his life, but now he has a _sketchpad_. Quite odd, isn't it?" She put her finger on her chin.

_Last time I remembered,_ I thought,_ I wasn't this close to a person before, all the more a _girl

I put my hand up to grab her attention. "Ah, sorry, but do I _know _you?"

She stared at me, and her smile weakened a bit.

"_Know you_? Lance, c'mon, that's not a funny joke. You know you were never one for comedy."

"No, seriously, who are you?"

Her gaze turned downwards, but quickly shifted up again, as she handed me back my sketchpad.

"Oh, sorry! Must've thought you were someone else, probably." She scratched her head.

"Wait, but you said my na-"

But then she already got out of her seat and was walking away, in the direction of some entourage of girls.

I pondered for a moment, before turning back at my sketchbook. A single question bubbled up in my head.

_Just who was she?_

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**Sorry again for the short chapter! I was supposed to continue it on, but I have school and I need to catch up on my sleep. Plus this felt like a good stopping point too. At any rate, I'll see you guys next time, peace out!**


	3. A Connection Strengthens

Chapter 3: A Connection Strengthens

**What's up guys, I'm back. I realized that 1 week for a chapter seems too long for a single chapter, so they're coming out every few days or so. Since I still have school, they'll be probably coming out at night. Reviews, feedback, and criticism are always appreciated!**

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"Cel, are you alright? You've been awfully silent for a while now."

_Cod, there _must _be something wrong with me, _I chided to myself. _Since when were you the type of squid to get obsessed about a _girl_?_

"Lance, hello? Are you in there? Hello?" Someone grabbed my shoulder.

I looked up from my self-pep-talk, and saw Riel with a concerned look plastered on his face.

"Sorry, Rye. Got a little caught up in my thoughts. What do you want?" I asked.

His expression barely changed, but then his mouth formed a smile. "Nothing, I was just wondering when you'd come back from dreamland. What were you thinking about?"

The thought of that girl popped up again. Incredible purple tentacles, her somehow out-of-place red eyes. Her gleaming white skin…

I gave myself a mental douse of ink.

"I apologize again. I really can't say, Rye. Personal things.

He took on a sly grin. "Is it a girl?"

"What? No! Do you take me for the type of Inkling to get all worked up over a girl?" I could practically feel my cheeks burning up despite my words.

"What about that beauty of a squid you were talking to?"

Was this room getting a bit hotter?

"I already told you, I don't care about things like that. Stop putting words in my mouth." I replied.

Riel gave me a loud chuckle as I told him my response. Before he could say anything though, we could hear the ring of the school bell resonating through the classroom.

"Well, guess that's our cue for recess, Cel. Catch ya on the finside!" He stood up, grabbed his wallet, and left.

_At least I'm alone with my thoughts now, I suppose._

I was thinking of probably sleeping in, since I didn't have any cash with me. But as I was preparing my desk for another quick nap, I spotted a familiar face out of the corner of my eye.

It was _her _again.

_Seriously, what's wrong with you Lance? You have an oath to keep. Love is off-limits, remember?_

But even my own thoughts couldn't penetrate the rush of heat rising to my cheeks.

_Alright, how about calming down a little? Think of, uh, school! Math, Science, PE, and whatnot. Just don't think of you-know-what._

I could feel myself getting more anxious the longer I stared at her gorgeous physique.

_This isn't helping! Get a hold of yourself, Splatterson. You have to keep it together. No more lovey-dovey thoughts. Keep those emotions inside!_

I forced myself to look away, keeping my eyes off _you-know-who_ for a moment. But try as I might, I couldn't stop thinking of her.

I smacked myself in the head, and focused on going to sleep. Count the jellies, Lance. Just count them…

_Purple tentacles…_

"NOPE!"I stood up an shouted, a little bit _too_ loud.

I looked around me, and saw snickers of amusement from fellow classmates. I could feel my cheeks getting warmer again, but this time from embarrassment. I sat back down, hoping that this nightmare of a day would just end already, but then it got a _whole_ lot worse.

Lying face-down on my desk, I once again attempted to sleep, but then I abruptly heard the sound of footsteps going towards me, and before I knew it, two girls were flanking either side of my chair.

"So, _you're_ the cruel squid that made her cry." The one on my right confirmed.

_Wait, what?_ I thought, suddenly comprehending their words. _Made who cry? I haven't talked to anyone else except for Rye. Was there anyone else I…_

Suddenly, realization washed over my downward face.

"Hey, aren't you going to say something? We know what you did, we just want to hear it from you." The one on my left explained.

_Think, Lance, think! There must be _something _you can do to get out of this situation._

I mistakenly looked up, and met eye-to-eye with an angry Inkling with a look of pure rage.

Oh, and there was the other girl on my left, with a frown but upturned eyebrows.

"Ah, _now_ you get up. Did you actually hear anything we said?"

_Yeah, this Is a problem._

"Yeah, I did. And, to tell you the truth, I have no idea who you're talking about or who the crybaby is, but all I can tell you is that I'd wouldn't put in the effort into purposefully making someone shed a few tears, so could you go back to your little friend circle? I'm trying to sleep here." I said, lying straight to their face.

"…No idea? NO IDEA? You listen here, squid. I don't care if you didn't mean it. _You _made our friend cry. She's _bawling_ her eyes outin a bathroom stall! _You _have to pay the consequences. I'm not going until you _do_." She said threateningly, pointing at me with each statement she declared.

_This day just keeps getting better and better._

"If you don't believe me, fine. But I'm telling you, I was saying the truth.I'm not apologizing or anything for an action I didn't commit. Wait all you want, I can sit here all day." I insisted, in a matter-of-factly tone.

The two girls grumbled, and retreated outside of the classroom.

_That was easier than I thought. I was getting worried that I'd have to literally sit there until they left._

Readying my desk for a long overdue nap, I rested my head and closed my eyes.

_Peace, at la-_

_SMACK!_

When I raised my head again, the door was wide open, and I saw the familiar faces of those two squids again. But this time they came back with someone else.

By the time I realized who it was, it was too late.

Our gazes met, and I saw the same quirky red eyes, and two purple tentacles flowing down from her head. Her hands, raised to cover her face, were wet with tears.

At that moment, I thought _I wonder why Cod hates me all of a sudden today_.

But but before I could contemplate another stupid situation, she broke free of her friends' grasp, and charged out the door.

Both of the girls ran after her in a hurry, and their footsteps echoed throughout the hallway until they were too distant to be heard.

The door slowly closed by itself, leaving a lot of confused and seemingly worried faces in the classroom.

At that time, the only words that popped out of my head were: _She probably hates me._

I didn't know why, but for some reason I felt dread when that sentence weighed in my head, and I abruptly started to cry.

_Why am I crying? I barely know her! That isn't reason enough…_

But tears fell anyway.

_Why…_

Then the bell rang.

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**And so ends another chapter in the story. I decided to level the word count to around 1k+, but it'll probably increase as I progress the story. Sorry for the slow start, I realized my original writing style was a bit too quick, and I ended up writing some hundred words when I first stated doing the first chapter, so I changed it mid-way into chapter 2. So with that, see you guys next time!**


	4. A Not-So-Faithful Encounter

Chapter 4: A Not-So-Faithful Encounter

**Heya guys, I've returned! It's about Friday when I start writing this, so 2 new chapters will probably come out over the weekend. Word count is hovering over 1.2k, and I'm hoping to increase that but still makes quality content, if I can. Reviews, feedback, and criticism are always appreciated!**

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The lonely sides of Shellford street seemed even more gloomy than I remembered today.

Walking home, I pretty much felt extreme relief at the fact that I don't have to be there with _her_ anymore. It was like snapping out of a trance or someone hypnotized you, but you broke free. The immediate satisfaction I felt when I stepped off school grounds was a nice breath of fresh air.

_Ah, yes, but you school tomorrow, right, Lance? You'll get to see that gorgeous squid aga-_

I silently sighed, still disappointed in myself for not being able to dispel these indecent thoughts from my head. They were like a virus, infecting every thought process I have and filling them in her image.

"Dinner and a nice nap seems euphorically good right about now." I said, to no one in particular.

Continuing to contemplate my decisions in life, I was wondering when I'd be put out of my ever-growing misery when, out of the corner of my eye, I saw a group of shadows hiding in an alley between two houses. Giving in to my curiosity, I sneaked closer to the odd get-together.

I focused on the figures, and, upon closer inspection, weren't your typical Inkling alleyway parties.

Each of them had some weird hairstyle, with some type of new eye masks on their faces, their tentacles seemed more fluffy for some reason, and they all had at least _4 _of them hanging from their head. On said tentacles, they had these weird white indentations on them, and I could've sworn I saw them before…

It clicked in my head.

_Octarians._

And not just any Octarians, they were _Octolings_, Octarians with humanoid forms. Some form of kelp weeds were stuck on either side of the head.

But the question is, _what are they doing here?_

"Concealment charge is compromised, we are uncovered. Requesting abort of mission. I repeat, requesting abort. Is intel there?" I heard a voice say.

_What in the world, the salmon is a concealment charge?_

I put 2 and 2 together, and figured out they must've been hidden before their "charge" was broken.

I scanned each of them, and saw they were wearing some weird type of familiar clothing, like a black spandex with metal plastered onto them. It's as if they were models with the amount of skin they were showing, and the oddity of their fashion sense.

Or if they were soldiers.

_Octoling spies. The kelp must mean they're of Elite ranking._

They might as well be some group of Inklings cosplaying as Octarian soldiers, but I knew just as much that I needed to get out of there.

And the being the stupid squid that I was, I leaned in closer to hear what they were discussing.

"-is located. We are ordered to merely retrieve and return with the target. No sightings, no nothing. Once completed, we must bring them to Octavio immediately to move onto Phase 3. Is this understood?"

The rest of the nodded.

"Good," said what seemed to be the leader, "now we can sta-"

_SNAP!_

I looked at my feet, and saw that I had stepped on a twig that must've fallen from the overhanging tree.

I turned around, and saw that every single of the Octolings' eyes were on me.

_Ah, carp._

I smiled, and held my hands up in a surrendering fashion.

"Can't we all just get alo-"

The moment I spoke, a gust of wind blew across the alley, and when I looked back at Octarians, they were already gone.

Confused, I took a moment to process everything that just happened.

_Octolings on the surface. They're looking for something, and they need to give it to some guy named Octavio. Where have I heard that name before?_

I shook my head, for there was no need to think about this for now. But yet again, my mind stuck to another topic I didn't want to be in as of the moment.

_But what is the "target" they need to retrieve?_

Gathering myself up, I continued the journey back home.

* * *

"Lance, stop playing with your food. It's dinner time, eat."

_First that odd girl, now Elite Octoling soldiers in the County? Something isn't right here, and I know it._

"Lance, is there something wrong?"

I looked up, and saw my mom, looking worried about something.

"What? I'm perfectly fine, mom. I just have some things to think about." I explained.

Luna suddenly looked towards me, with a curious glare in her eyes.

"Mind sharing those things to us?" She asked.

I pretended to think about it for a moment, much to her dismay.

"No."

_Well, that ends that._

I went back down to the rabbit hole that was my thoughts.

_Seriously, what was so wrong in the world that this day just had to be terrible?_

I tapped on my glass, finding a focus as to keep me sane for a bit.

_I didn't even ask that girl for her name. I probably should tomorrow._

I mentally smacked myself, why should I delve myself deeper into this troubling mess?

_Tomorrow._

I groaned and rested my back on the chair, finally surrendering to my emotions. Might as well enjoy home as long as it lasts.

_Cod, I hope the next day won't be as bad as today, but with my stinging luck, it's probably going to be worse._

I stared down at my food, hoping to get a helpful answer from the carrots laying at the edge.

No response.

_Sorry, poor food products, but guess I've got to eat now. _I apologized, while grabbing my spoon.

* * *

And so, there I was, laying on my bed. You might be wondering what I'm thinking, and the answer is:

_I can't sleep._

Severely affected by insomnia, I was looking wide-eyed at the ceiling, hoping for Cod to put me to my final rest.

I didn't get my wish granted, which is probably for the best.

I stared at the poster of the Squid Sisters, which I got back before I discovered the joyous terror of real life. Good times.

On the poster, Callie and Marie were doing their signature poses, one hand on hip level and the other raised to their head, above the words "See the Squid Sisters in their brand new concert, right in Inkopolis Square!"

It was a little worn-out and it had a rip on the left side, but other than that it was practically fine.

Aside from the poster, there was a shelf hanging by a few screws on the wall, which held some of the old books I used to read: _The Inkinators_,

_Devil in the Ink_, _Inkling in the Rye_, and some others that were a bit too far to read.

It's far from a paradise, but it's good enough for me.

_This is all too much for me._

I glanced at the poster again.

_Why does Cod bestow upon me these stupid circumstances. Maybe this is all a dream, and I can just wake up now._

Still conflicting with my sleep deprivation, I stuffed up my pillow once again and solemnly laid my head on it's fluffiness, determined to actually sleep for once.

_Wait a moment,_ I hesitated,_ don't I have that Math homewo-_

And I fell asleep.

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**Finished out another chapter while in school, and got surprised on the development on this one. Thanks for all the followers and favourites, you guys are awesome! And, once again, see you wonderful cephalopods next time!**


	5. A Real Nightmare

Chapter 5: A Real Nightmare

**What's up guys! Sorry if this chapter comes out a bit late, I've been playing Minecraft a lot recently and it's been getting to my head. So, as a remedy I've been playing a lot of **_**Splatoon 2 **_**instead. Reviews, criticism, and feedback are always appreciated!**

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I was standing on top of a hill, black patches of grass scattered around me, the shine of the moon lighting the otherwise dark night. The smell of smoke entered my lungs, though there was no sign of a source in sight.

Looking down on myself, I was still wearing my same old black pants and polo, with a grey jacket to compliment my tastes.

_Well, this seems realistic, _I thought. _A dream, maybe?_

I looked around for a quick view of my surroundings, but when I turned behind me, I saw absolute destruction.

Whole buildings now reduced to husks of themselves, blackened roads swivelling between them. Entire trees lying around, their ends charred to coal. Streets devoid of all life.

Though through the dust and ash, I could see a familiar path placed far in the ruins, and it dawned on me the truth of the situation, yet I wasn't able to accept it.

_This can't be…_

I swiftly ran down the hill at an amazing pace, surprising even myself. With no time to waste, I had to see it for my own good.

Even with the soles of my feet aching, my energy long gone, my body just didn't seem to stop for anything.

_Why am I doing this? _I thought, asking another useless question. _It's just a dream! It's not like…_

It seems that my mind just liked to get emotional over stupid, unnecessary things today.

Cutting through disheveled pathways and burnt wood, I could feel the dread growing ever so quickly, my sanity drifting away. Yet the moon still shone as bright as it always has, filling me with some hope that I wasn't too late.

After what seemed like hours, I was finally there. The sounds of collapsing trees and buildings going underway faded, drowned out by the mental screams that, I discovered, were my own.

Standing in from of my very eyes was the ruins of what looked like an average suburban household, smoke still fuming from it's remains. My knees buckled, not being able to hold despair trickling down my body.

I scanned the area with teary eyes, hoping that I hadn't failed, that I wasn't as much as an idiot I thought I was.

I couldn't have been more wrong.

My eyes focused on an oddly-shaped piece of debris, still smouldering on the charred ground. I trudged closer, sorting out the mess of thoughts swirling in my head. A dangerous situation bubbled up from my mind, and a single tear streamed down my cheek. Something even I couldn't hide from myself.

The truth

Finally next to the unique figure, my crawling body started to shiver. I wished to the great Cod above to just kill me right then and there, yet he didn't comply. I stared back down, now noticing a second shape next to the first.

_No._

I went closer.

_No, no._

Even closer.

_No, no, no._

So near.

_No, no, no, no._

More tears streamed down my face.

_NO NO NO NO NO NO-_

I hugged the two bodies, worthlessly crying for them to come back. The defiant emotions controlling me getting more violent as seconds passed.

Minutes. Hours.

_Mom._

I wiped my tears.

_Luna._

I gripped my family closer.

_I'm sorry. I'm sorry._

It wasn't a dream anymore.

_I'msorryI'msorryI'msorryI'msorryI'msorryI'msorryI'msorryI'msorryI'msorryI'mso-_

It was hell.

* * *

I stood up, a variety of feelings now dwindled into a single emotion: fear.

Walking away from the newly-constructed graves, I went off to find a nice steep cliff I could promptly jump off of.

_I don't want to live anymore._

Looking around, I finally spotted a sharp-enough rock, and tossed it up. I luckily caught it on the blunt side, and prepared to strike my neck. But, even then, Cod wasn't done with me just yet.

_I don't deserve to live anymore._

A body laid in front of me, though crudely hidden with dirt.

I dropped the stone, and inched closer to the cadaver, not knowing who it was or what it was. I wasn't in control of my own self, my body drawn to another.

_Kill me._

As I took a closer look, horror upon horror dawned on my eyes, and I couldn't take it anymore, yet they kept looking.

_Please, no more._

Her beautiful purple tentacles, bruised skin, and her odd red eyes.

My once dry eyes flowed with tears at record time, and I could feel shivers climbing up my neck.

_This truly is hell._

I stood up once again, and gritted my teeth. My hands formed two measly fists.

_And there'd be hell to pay._

Suddenly, I was lying down, my back sweatier than my gym teacher when we had to stay outside of the gymnasium for PE.

I glanced around, and recognizing my familiar surroundings, noticed that I was I was in my room.

_A dream._

I thought about it at first, then shook my head.

_A nightmare._

Determined to not go to back my purgatory of a sleep, I got out of my bed and glanced at my old alarm clock, which displayed a bright green _11:42_.

_Didn't even reach midnight, huh._

After two long seconds of depressing self-pity, I tried thinking of ways to keep me up for the night.

_Maybe some soda would do the trick_

I patted myself on the back for such ingenuity, and began walking towards my doo-

_CLASH! BANG!_

I jumped at the abrupt noises, and glanced at my ceiling. It's like someone dropped 2 whole vans on my roof. Stupid neighbors.

I waited for my heart beat to calm down, and deemed it safe to finally move. I stepped towards the door and opened to a dimly-light hallway. There was a faint light downstairs.

_Robbers?_

I sneaked closer to the stair rails, my curiosity burning with a passion.

On the dining room table, I saw my mom typing away at her laptop with incredible speed. After a quiet sigh, I went down the stairs.

She turned her head directly at me, eyes wide open, but quickly relaxed back and did a short arm-stretch.

"Lance, what are you doing up so late?" She inquired.

"Could ask the same about you, Mom. I'm just getting a drink." I answered.

"I'm doing some late-night office work, but I'll be done in a few minutes. You shouldn't stay up longer than this, okay?"

"Yeah, Mom, I won't." I replied while grabbing some Inkola, fully knowing that I wasn't going back to sleep.

I walked back to the stairs and started to get back to my room, but before that I glanced one more time at my mom.

"Good night, Mom."

"Good night, Lance." She replied, and went back to furiously typing.

I sighed once again, and continued walking to my bed.

By the time I woke up, I could smell the smoke.

* * *

**And there we have it! It was a struggle getting this out in like 4 hours, then stretching it to barely enough words, but it's done. I was a bit tired while writing the dream sequence part, so forgive me if it sounds too vague. Once again, see you wonderful squids and octos next time!**


	6. Fantasy to Reality

Chapter 6: Fantasy to Reality

**What's up guys, sorry for the wait! I got caught up on a Math project in school, so I couldn't work on this chapter for long. So, instead, I made it stretch to 2k words as an alternative! Reviews, feedback, and criticism is always appreciated!**

Coughing and wheezing, I once again got out of bed. My back and legs drenched with sweat, I assessed the situation.

_Smoke. There must've been a fire or something._

I coughed.

_Or there _is _a fire._

I abruptly stood up, only to meet a smoke-filled ceiling. I surged back down, my lungs filled with the foreign gas. This feeling felt all too familiar.

_Oh no._

I swinged arm around, trying to disperse the thick smoke around me, but no luck. Scenarios ran through my head for what's happening, but only one thought came to mind. The worst situation imaginable.

I had to get out of here. If my dream was true, then I needed to find them.

So I trudged along the floor, flailing my arms in the hope that I would grab something useful, but then a metallic feel reached my palm. I circled around the object, and found success in my search.

_The doorknob!_

I abruptly swung it open, only to meet a large burst of, yet again, smoke. No time to waste, I had to reach them.

"Mom! Luna! Are you there?" I shouted, with all my raspy voice could muster, despite the situation I was put in.

"Mom? Luna? CAN YOU HEAR ME?"

After mere seconds of my shriek, there was no response. Hope flushed out of my head, only despair within my grasp.

The supposed aftermath of this flashed before my eyes, and the same broken feeling rushed across my body. No dreams anymore to save me.

Prepared to kill myself right then and there, my knees gave in to the truth of the situation.

_No. Not yet._

I steadied myself on my feet. A burning spark matching the roaring flames I could hear from beyond the walls fiercely started to burn inside me. I couldn't give up, not now.

_There's still a chance._

"Luna! Mom! Are you there!" I shouted one more time.

And, as if answering my silent wish, something barely audible suddenly reached my ears.

"L-Lance! We're here!" I heard two faint voices downstairs.

Grabbing the rails and thrusting my legs forward, I ran down the stairs with what only I could assume was the hope that what I saw wouldn't happen this time.

"Lance, over here!"

I rushed to the direction of the dining room, and found a small pocket of clean air that the smoke hadn't reached yet. Finally, I opened my eyes.

In my sight were two small huddling figures, burn marks spread across their barren skin. The remains of their clothes still tinged with small embers.

"Mom! Luna!" I hugged my family closer.

They embraced back, tears and smiles exchanged between us, but suddenly let go. I glanced at their quivering mouths, lost expressions shaken with fear and grimace.

"Lance, what's going on?

I looked to my left, where the door to the front yard would've been, but was covered with smoke.

"I have no idea. What we need to do is get out of here."

Their faces didn't change. "How? We're cornered with all this fire!"

I smacked my head because of my stupidity, and thought for a solution.

_Think, think!_

Racking my head for an answer, I remembered something.

"On my way here, I didn't feel any close heat or any embers." I explained quickly. Luna nodded for a bit, and my mom just waited for me to continue.

I blinked for a moment. "The path from here to the stairs involves passing by the door. That must mean the only thing standing in our way to outside is the smoke. If we rush through and open the door, we can finally escape!"

They looked at me for a solid second, then got out of their curled position.

"We're ready."

I gave them a nod, and looked towards the direction of the door. "Hold my hands."

Reaching out my fingers, both of them took one of my hands.

We all forged ahead, searching for the large mahogany feeling of what was, most likely, the door.

_If my plan doesn't work, _I thought, _If we all suddenly die in a burst of fla-_

I shook my head, ridding my head of the negative thoughts. I needed to believe we could make it.

And so, we kept going, avoiding small spots of heat splattered on the floor, until I smacked face-first into a wooden surface.

_This must be it. We're finally free._

I, met with some resistance, let go of Luna's hand and reached for the doorknob. My palm felt the familiar metallic touch it always harbored.

And with a sickening _click!_, the door was open.

We all paused for a brief moment, taking in the fresh air of the outside world. The cool county breeze, the beautiful fields of the farms…

Only to be blasted by more smoke.

_Carp! I should've anticipated this._

Silently cursing myself, I could hear coughing from behind me. They must've taken in some of the smoke too.

"Mom! Luna!

Are you alright?"

I heard another cough before a, "Y-yeah, we're okay. Just get us out of here."

With no time to waste, I gripped my mom's hand harder and ran forward, Luna being closely dragged along. We all, gracefully, tumbled into the nearly-burnt front lawn.

And, finally, I opened my eyes.

_Cod almighty._

Whole houses in flames, inklings running around to avoid fires all over the place, smoke enveloping entire structures, and even the old Music Shrine in the distance was collapsing from the debris.

_What in Inkopolis is going on?!_

"Lance," Luna sputtered, "w-what's happening?"

But even I could only stare upon the destruction, which seemingly started from nowhere.

_What could've done all of this, in less than a night?_

I saw a small figure, scurrying along between houses.

_Or who._

I narrowed my eyes, looking to get a better view of the Octoling.

With barely visible tentacles and kelp flowing upwards from the sides of her head, she seemed to be carrying a bright yellow object, and I could've sworn something was moving inside it.

I hugged Luna close to me and grabbed my mom, which prompted similar surprised reactions from both of them, and dashed to the soldier.

But before I could even reach the Octoling, I heard another voice shrieking my name. I whipped my head around, and my mouth gawked open in response.

Running right through the small flames on the road, her pretty purple tentacles now partially seared black, and the red tint of her eyes replaced with a brighter color, but still the same slim and gorgeous figure and incredibly beautiful face.

"Lance! LANCE!" She screamed again.

The world went blank around me, only my thoughts to keep me company.

_Why is she here? What happened to her tentacles?! HER EYES?!_

These questions repeated in my head for what seemed to be hours, with no signs of rest.

But a sudden slap to the face brought me back to reality, and the chaos surrounding me entered back.

"Lance, quit zoning out! We've got to find the evacuation center!" A familiar voice said beside me.

I turned my head and met with sparkling yellow eyes staring into my own.

_Yellow? But I could've swo-_

"LANCE! WE HAVE TO GO!"

I felt another hand rushing to my cheek, but I dodged it with ease.

"Alright, alright. I'm coming." I replied, getting back up from my daydream. I really needed to get ahold of my thoughts, or things like this could happen every single time I'm with her.

_Yeah duh, Lance. Stop stating the obvious and follow them!_

And so I did, sprinting along the street. Heading towards the direction of the evacuation center, the Octoling was once again nowhere to be found.

_Cod, this would've been so much easier if she hadn't come to me._

I stared at her backside, her darkened tentacles now perfectly swinging in my sight. I had an odd feeling of wanting to comfort her, say that everything's alright.

How useless could I get.

There was anarchy spreading all around me, and I could only thing of cozying up to a girl I barely know, when even she knows that there are better things to do than get all flirty.

With that thought in mind, I was determined to show that I could be serious too. There was too much at stake here to be joking around.

_Grow up, Lance._

My feet now suddenly motivated, my mind clear, I miraculously delivered on my goal, picking up the pace to catch up with the group.

"How far is the evac center?" I asked, hoping for not much longer.

Luna glanced at me. "About a few minutes away if all goes smoothly."

"And if it doesn't?"

She shuddered, "Let's not think about that."

I nodded, remembering that the situation is grim enough as it is. Worrying about even worse things could be fatal at this state.

We kept running until the silhouette of the evacuation building came into view. Sighing with relief, we moved towards the shadowy sight until-

"Lance! GET ME OUT OF HERE! LANCE!"

There was a familiar voice coming from my right, crying out in pain.

_Who could it be this time?_

I turned my head to a pile of debris, where a large figure seemed to be trapped under it.

_Wait, is tha-_

"LANCE! HELP!" shouted Riel, gripping on the piece of building weighing down on him.

I looked at Luna, who seemed to understand the situation. She nodded back at me, then grabbed Mom and Ms. Purple Tentacles to her side and ran forward.

Realizing I never asked for her name, I bit my lip in frustration.

_I probably should when I get back,_ I promised.

But now there was another task at hand, and a friend to help. I ran towards Riel, where he was still struggling with the load on him. A thin line of ink was trickling down his forehead.

"How in the world did you get like this?" I asked briefly.

He looked at me dead in the eye, as if there were more important matters to attend to. "It's a long story, I'll tell ya once I'm out of here."

"Got it."

And so I heaved with him, the debris now shifting aside from the sheer force of both of us. It was much lighter than I thought.

I took my attention to Riel, to check if he was injured in a way. He seemed barely fine, until I looked at his legs.

"Rye, your _le-_"

"Stop! I can make it, we just need treatment in the long run." he interjected.

I panicked for a moment, but then I remembered something in my pocket. I shoved my hand in, and pulled out the same old handkerchief I always keep there.

Searching around for something to act as an anchor, I spotted a stick beside Riel, so I reached for it and wrapped the cloth on his leg, tying it up together with the twig. It wasn't pretty, but it was fine as a tourniquet.

He reached his hand out for support, and I heaved him up on my shoulder, helping balance on his legs.

Or, more accurately, his _leg_.

"Easy does it, now. The evac center can treat it further. Just a little more until we're there." I encouraged.

He gave a faint nod, and we both trudged towards the direction of where our friends were.

**Extra long chapter concludes! Sorry if it has some different tones in some parts of the story, I don't really have the same thought process every time I write a story, so it's bound to be confusing at times. I still try to get some quality output though, so hope that goes well. So with that, see you awesome splatters next time! **


	7. The Calm After The Storm

Chapter 7: The Calm After The Storm

**What's up guys! I was able to squeeze out another chapter for today, but it was a challenge because I was being forced to celebrate my birthday. Reviews, feedback, and criticism are always appreciated!**

* * *

The morning rays shone once again upon Calamari County, this time highlighting the destruction and chaos that ensued the night before. Smoke cleared, and ruins of collapsed structures covered most of the area.

News channels flooded the scene with vans and helicopters alike, filming the aftermath of what was dubbed the "Great County Fire", the radical flame that burned more than half the location. Headlines sprouted out everywhere of the sympathetic disaster that befell the pitiful citizens, each with there own titles yet hyperbolic all the same.

The survivors of the horrid event who were able to arrive at the evacuation center had to be moved into the Inkopolis General Hospital, as the county zapfish was unexpectedly taken during the catastrophe, and soon enough the emergency power that was used depleted all the way down in a single night, adding to it being the closest medical center that could hold more than half our region's population.

Naturally, those survivors included Luna, Mom, me, Riel, and Ms. Re-_ Yellow _Eyes now, it seems. I didn't even have the courage to ask for her name myself.

So, I instead took my time getting transferred to the IGH hospital rooms so I could enjoy a night's sleep which was, fortunately, dreamless. And being the happy-go-lucky squid that I wasn't, I took it upon myself to go around and check up on my family and my friends.

With morning on the rise, the TV still brimming with reports of the calamity, I got out of my comfy hospital bed and roamed around to find Luna's room first.

But with my codly luck that didn't exist the last few times I needed it, she was already bouncing around the hallways, greeting burn victims and waving at patients. It was a mystery how she had such vigor after everything she went through, but it's isn't surprising with her unmatched stamina and abnormal endurance after all that harsh training she went through.

Done with her courtesy, she looked as happy as ever. It really was a sight to see her smile, like it'd instantly life up your spirits once you took a look at it. I casually walked up to her, feeling refreshed to see at least one loved one safe and sound.

She turned to my position, and welcomed my presence with a cheeky grin. I returned the smile half-heartedly as if it wasn't worth the effort.

"Lance, you're up early! How are you?" She beamed.

I relaxed my shoulders. "Was about to ask the same to you. Up and about so soon?"

"Yep! The beds here are wicked fluffy. I could've slept on them for ages if I didn't have to eat some breakfast."

Oh, right. Breakfast was still a thing.

"So are you doing okay? Any pains or aching parts that you need to disclose?" I asked.

Luna thought about it for a moment, until a "Not that I feel as of the moment. All that training payed off, eh?" She elbowed my gut, with a little too much force.

"Yeah yeah, good for you. Sticking with your rigorous regiment, far longer than I did. Truly amazing, yes. Got anymore strenuous skills you'd dare demonstrate?"

Puffing her cheeks, she scrunched up her eyebrows. "No need to get all grouchy about it, jeez. Just trying to lighten the mood here."

I sighed, feeling tired already from all this banter. "Mkay, fine. You know where Mom's room is?"

"Yeah, but you probably shouldn't disturb her though. Last time I checked she was sleeping like a jellyfish after an all-you-can-eat buffet."

"That's fine, I'll just go check up on her. Care to tell which room she's in?"

She pointed to my right. "Just over there, 107. Be careful, it's a long way there."

"Alright, see ya later then." I replied, shrugging off her warning.

"Later!"

And so I walked away, off to check on my mom, the prestigious Sandra Splatterson.

Now, I may have not given a proper introduction of my mom just yet, but as you could probably these past 2 days were a bit hectic. Better late than never, as they say.

My mother, Sandra Splatterson, is what you'd call the Chief Executive Officer, or "CEO" of a company called Splat Co., an enormous corporation with products ranging from turfing weapons to even your favorite clothing brands. You've seen it, we probably sell it.

This might seem big and booming for most, but in all seriousness those _most _don't even know she's married or had any children. My mom uses her maiden name, Inkerton, whenever it concerns things like formal meetings or business matters. Only her closest confides know about her relationship and her kids, and she made sure to keep it that way.

She's been married to my dad, Henry Splatterson, for quite a long time now. He wasn't born to any big-shot or celebrity, just your average squid who grew up in Calamari County. But for whatever bizarre reason they cooked up with, they hit it off better than an intense game of ink-pong. So she decided to settle her roots in the county, and not soon after, me and Luna were brought into the world.

He hasn't returned from his long voyage out into the Inkocean, as the captain of an expedition crew set out to find new land ever since the water levels started rising. It's been a couple of years since he first took off, but he still somehow gets to send us messages every month or so, even with all the work he's been doing.

You could probably say my parents are both amazing and inkredible, and I'd probably agree with you.

Anyway, back to finding my mom's room.

I passed by several doors on my way there, with some suspicious screams and loud banging sounds emanating from behind them. Though some passing nurses assured me that it was a common occurrence here, it still didn't calm my nerves.

After what seemed like forever, I finally arrived at a large door that the number _107 _was embedded on. I could hear faint snoring from the other side of the door.

_I'll check up on her later, _I smiled.

Stretching my arms, I went aside to go look for Riel's room next.

This time, I went off to find the receptionist lady to ask where he was sleeping. It was a quick trip there, seeing as though I didn't need to take my time inspecting every door along the way for a specific.

I entered into another sector of the building, and there was a desk with an attendant standing right behind it.

Approaching the receptionist for the location of one Riel Squidsert, I quickly memorized his room number and headed towards the elevator, Riel's room being in the third floor. I hit the "down" button, and waited for the approaching lift to open.

* * *

**And another chapter finished! I was thinking of including all the characters check-ups in this chap, but it's getting a bit late and I've got one last day of school tom. But at least I finally decided on a backstory for Lance's mom! So with that, see you fantastic inkers next time!**


	8. Here Lies Mischief

Chapter 8: Here Lies Mischief

**Bam bam boo, I've returned! School got absolutely cancelled because of a storm, so I have a 4 day long weekend to look forward to. Which also means more stories to write! Reviews, feedback, and criticism are always appreciated.  
**

* * *

Getting off the elevator, the open hallway of the 3rd floor greeted me with silent stares. The reflective walls gleamed with a sort of hopelessness, as if you'd inevitably end up in this very same place for the last time.

I took a step out, wondering whether Riel was up already or not. His room, 303, was fairly close to the life. Made my life much easier, specifically in the way that I didn't have to drown in my own thoughts just to pass the time between me and the door.

I live a sad life.

So I walked towards the third room to my right, this time the door embedded with a _303 _right near the top. It was awfully quiet from my position, and I know for a fact that trucks would cower in fear from the volume of sound produced by a sleeping Riel. It was either he's dead, or he's awake and probably not in the room.

Wasting no time, I opened the door and got a surprising answer to my question.

There sat Riel, and by the miracle of Cod, was for whatever intriguing reason was reading a book. A _book_.

"Who are you and what have you done with Rye?" I held a finger gun up.

He gave me a confused look, but then he put his book down and sighed. "Is it _that_ surprising? Sure, I don't like school books. But novels are really interesting, y'know?"

"You purposely _failed _our Inkling book report last year just to get out of actually reading a book."

"Hey, that book list was entirely bogus. How am I supposed to read something like _Ink before you Think _when I could be finishing my video game?"

"Same old, same old, then." I sighed.

He chuckled for a bit. "Same old, indeed."

I looked towards his TV screen, which was on with the local news. "You're seeing them too?"

"Yeah dude, every single channel filled with reports on the Great County Fire, they call it. I'm just sitting here worried where I'll live now."

"Didn't your parents make it to evac too? You can hop on and move to Inkopolis." I joked.

He smirked. "Only if you'd be my next-door neighbor, squiddo. I'm not living in

Is breakfast ready? I'm starving."

I pointed my thumb behind me. "Yeah, it's been ready since ages ago. You can head off to the cafeteria now."

"Nice. Hope the hospital food here isn't as bad as in the county."

And with that he got out of bed and headed off to eat, to his utter dismay, the generic terrible food products here.

* * *

_So that's Lance, Mom, and Riel. There should be one perso-_

Suddenly, as I stepped out of the room, a stretcher poked out of the corner and almost whacked me in the knee. Two inklings were lifting it on each side, trying to get it inside the room over. There was what looked to be a weird squid wearing a squidball cap on the stretcher, suffering from familiar burn marks on her arms and on one of her legs.

They carried said inkling inside the room and onto the bed, making sure to be careful with the placement of the body. The two of them proceeded to exit the room after they finished.

I peeked inside, curious on who the person was. If there were burn marks, then maybe she was a victim of the fire. Maybe she saw something, _anything_, that might lead to who started all of this.

Brimming with curiosity, I entered the room with an iron will. If there'd ever be a future just like how my dream went, revenge would be on my agenda. Hence my obvious privacy-breaking tactic.

There was no chance that I'd let this slip up, there still are people that lost so much during the disaster. If there's a small possibility I could bring light to the situation, then I'll do what I must.

Closing the door behind me, I slowly shut it, hoping not to wake her up. And with success, I gathered some bravado and forced myself to go towards her.

I approached the bed, which in retrospect probably wasn't a good idea, but I was committed to the goalby then.

The person in question resting was quite the weird inking, her eye mask suspiciously peppered with small holes.

But then I noticed something out of the corner my eye, something sticking out from under the cap she was wearing. Something very odd, yet astoundingly recognizable. Something…

…_familiar._

I stared at the curled up tentacle, quivering beneath her hat. I tried to recall where I've seen something similar before.

Then it hit me.

_Weird eye mask, curled up tentacle? And those ears…_

I took a glance at them, her ears weirdly lobed along the side, one more indented than the other.

_Octoling._

I took a step back.

_OCTOLING!_

Suddenly, I was on the floor, my palms spread across the surface. It seems that my frail body couldn't handle the shock, much to my disbelief. And just to add to my misery, the octopus on the bed started to stir.

So with my terrible quick thinking, I panicked and speedily crawled under the closest place I could get to, which to my horrid luck, was right below the Octoling's bed.

Now, why didn't I just run outside, you might ask. Well, you see here, there's this thing I have called "stupidity". You might've heard of it, I dunno, but it's a serious condition. Hope that answers your oddly-questionable thought process.

_Lance you dumbo, now you're stuck in here until she gets out! _I heard a voice say.

_Maybe she'll leave early? _I told myself.

_Do you really think that?_

Sighing, I gave in my inner thought's words. The only thing left to do was play the waiting game. It was either that or be labelled as a inkling creep that liked to stalk female patients under their bed while they sleep, and that situation doesn't really sit well with me.

The girl was still shuffling in her bed, probably struggling to wake up. It wasn't until I felt the weight on top of me lessen that I saw a pair of feet reach down right in my sight.

She stepped away to the table on the far left side of the room, and I could hear a _beep_ reverb flow from her direction. A bright blue light reflected on the floor, and I heard a girl's voice speak.

"Outgoing transmission, Soldier 807." said the Octoling, her tone hardening with every word. " Several burn marks spread throughout body, resulting in my unaccounted presence at mission headquarters. Transported to what appears to be an Inkling medical facility, disguise currently compromised. It seems that inkling society is so ignorant, they haven't noticed my immediate appearance as their opposing species. Returning to base at once."

The blue light receded, but I could still hear a small, barely audible noise coming from her.

"_S-sniff…_ why…"

The octoling's breathing got even rougher.

_What's going on?_

She started snivelling, and with a _thump_, she collapsed on the floor.

"I j-just want to go h-home…"

Whimpering, she entered a fetal position and started shivering on the cold, hospital floor. But, unfortunately for me, her head was positioned right in front of my own.

But before I could notice my extremely regrettable luck, she poked her head out and her gaze met mine.

She stopped shaking, and her eyes widened to meet my own expanding stare.

We looked at each other for a solid 5 seconds until I awkwardly waved my slightly-trapped hand.

"Uh, hey."

* * *

**So the chapter closes! I might've been slightly tired today, because I was preparing for school but whup-tee-doo, it got suspended. At least I have some extra days to work up on this story, and thank you guys for the followers and favorites! With that, I'll be seeing you stunning squiddos and octos next time!**


	9. Trifling Layers

Chapter 9: Trifling Layers

**What's up gamers! I've finally finished this part when it was supposed to be uploaded yesterday (sorry for that!). I apologize again if there's some bits in the story that come off as "cringey", I'm not that experienced in writing really emotional statements and it might hinder the story a little. But as always: Reviews, feedback, and criticism are always appreciated!**

* * *

"So, come here of-"

The octoling suddenly grabbed my wrist, which was stuck beside my head between the underside of the bed and the floor, and forcefully pulled me out from below.

She put me in a chokehold, ridding me of my right to breathe. I tried to pull her arm away from neck, but I was already grasping for air and losing all my energy. To be honest I was a little caught off guard, but too late now.

"Who are you? How long have you been there?" she interrogated.

I tried to answer, but the only sound that came from my trapped throat was a high-pitched "EeH!". Struggling to take in air, I flailed my arms around and accidentally struck her side.

She groaned, but still didn't let go. A few more seconds passed, and I could've sworn I was going to pass out, but then she remembered-

"Oh, right. You need your throat to talk."

-and finally dropped arms back to her side. I stumbled to the floor, gasping for air. I turned my head, but only saw a cold, solemn stare from toughened eyes of a soldier that were crying with genuine sadness moments before.

"Now, answer my questions, inkling. Or your next breath will be your last."

Coughing, I got to my feet. "Pretty bold of you to say that, considering you almost killed me. Next time you ask someone a question, make sure they're _alive _first."

She scowled, and proceeded to kick me in the stomach. "You're in no position to say that, squid. Now _spill_, or the only thing spilling tonight is your ink." she added.

It took me a while to process what she said. My lips formed a smirk. "Oh, ah, sorry no. I'm not into that kind stuff. Though I do know a frie-"

And thus marked the 2nd time I got kicked in the gut that day.

"Not that kind of ink, you dimwit. Anymore snark from you and home won't be the only thing you're missing." she threatened

I held my hands up in surrender. "Alright, alright. But still, your threats sound _really_ redunda-"

She lifted up her palm and balled a fist menacingly.

"-OKAY, okay. I'm Lance, and I'm just your average inkling that just needs some answers from someone, uh, such as yourself."

"And so you _snuck_ into my hospital room, _hid_ under the bed, and _waited_ until I woke up just for some dumb questions?"

"Well, if you word it that way, it sounds really bad. But hear me out. I know you don't want this even more than I do, so I'll make it simple. Okay?"

I waited for a response, and it wasn't for a few tense seconds that she relaxed her shoulders and let out a sigh.

"So you did hear me, huh?"

I smiled embarassingly. "Erm, yeah, I did. But I'd compliment your acting skills: Here you are interacting as if you're a real tough soldier, but you were bawling your eyes out moments ago. What's up with that?"

She stared me dead in the eye, no trace of emotion found in her expression, and her penetrative gaze sent shivers down my spine

"None of your concern." she spat out.

I glared back with newfound courage, my determination seeping back after realizing the entire reason I came here in the first place.

"Find, then. If you don't want to answer that question, answer these instead: Why did _your _kind burn down my home? Why did _your _troops steal the zapfish that's been powering the county for years. Why did _you _pretend to be severely injured when you only have slight burns? Why did _you _even agree to all of this when the look on your face obviously says you don't! Who _are _you? "

But even with my long string of questions, she simply stared at me with two unbroken eyes, not moving a single inch from her face.

"Do you really think I need to answer them? I can effortlessly knock you unconscious without you knowing it. Why even try?"

Before I could speak a single word, by that point, I was already fed up with all of her stupid retorts. It was my turn to lose my temper.

And in the blink of an eye, my rage-fueled body with absolutely no patience, speeded through and I found myself behind the Octoling.

"What the-"

I crouched down and spun my leg, knocking her out to the floor. Still stuffed with anger, I pinned down her arms and legs with my own. She struggled to break free, but my strength now outmatched hers.

_No, don't! Lance, you can't do this again! GET YOURSELF TOGETHER! _another voice seemed to tell me.

I jumped back into reality, and shook my head. Almost had another episode. But when I looked downwards, I still saw myself weighing down the octoling. Hey eyes glinted with tears.

"P-please, no…" her voice said, with a miserable soft tone.

I reluctantly let go, hoping that I was doing the right thing. She got up, and shuffled back into the corner of the room, and started to rub her wrists. Slowly approaching, I held out my hand to her.

"Let's, erm, try this again. What's your name?"

She stared at me with wistful eyes, before grabbing my palm and slowly nodded. I easily pulled her up, but she still didn't let go.

"O-okay. My n-name is Alice."

Waiting for a continuation, I stared at her trembling figure until I realized that was all she had to say. I sighed in disbelief, knowing that this might take awhile.

"Alrighty, then. Like I've mentioned before, I'm Lance. Lance Splatterson. Mind if I ask you some questions?"

I could feel her shiver for a moment, before looking at me with soft, teary eyes. "S-sure, but Is it okay if I sit down for a bit?"

Nodding, I gave her my approval. She glanced at the bed, and gradually moved to sit on it. I looked around, and spotted a chair right beside a table near the TV. I casually grabbed it and dragged it towards the bed, so I could sit down with her.

"Now, just to fuel my curiosity, what's with your schizophrenia?" I started.

She gave me a confused look, until drooping her eyes down in realization of what I meant by _schizophrenia_. "It's not like I do it on purpose. I was… _forced_, if you can see it that way. My mother had me drafted into the military, just as all other octolings have been since the start. We were all locked in each of our own roo- _cells_, and we were tortured, every, single, day. We suffered."

She gritted her teeth.

"It was _hell_."

Those last few words resonated within my body, my mind doing backflips with the connections it bridged together.

"What do you mean by 'the start'?"

But It wasn't until I looked back up when I saw Alice grabbing both her arms together, shaking with fear. I realized that this might've been too much for the octoling.

Giving an apologizing look, I assured her (and probably myself) that she didn't need to continue. "Sorry, that's… probably too far. We can move on to another que-"

But before I could continue, she held her arm up, signalling me to stop. "No, no, it's fine. You wouldn't understand if I can't start from the beginning. What started it all."

So I prepared myself for what was about to be the single most emotional rollercoaster I would've experienced by that point in time. But still, I nodded, and gestured her to continue.

* * *

**Chapter ends! The next one is going to be a bit different, but don't worry as it'll still be readable (well, by my standards as least.) And at the time of writing, we reached 1k views! Thanks to everyone who actually took their time and read this trash of a story, you guys are awesome! And with that, see you very neat peeps next time!**


	10. The Hidden Truth

Chapter 10: The Hidden Truth

**What's up guys! I returned with another chap for this bogus story, but it's needed to exhaust my non-existent creativity. Criticism, feedback, and reviews are always appreciated!**

* * *

_Running across wet mud, the dim roof of the cavern grimly faced my frantic body. The gruelling sounds of the muck under my sprinting feet made me paranoid if someone could hear my panicked steps. _

_There was no sense of direction or goal, nor any rhyme or reason to my actions. All I knew is that I had to get away from that place, my back shivering at the thought . Though the stuffy atmosphere was limiting my breathing, I still had to force myself to move. Even with all my limbs aching, my head in a frenzy of thoughts, this was still better than what I had to endure in _there_._

_The ravenous pathway seemed to relish in my suffering, as obstacles continuously tried to hinder my escape, which popped up from presumptuously nowhere. But before long, the dangerous blockages halted, and I found myself staring at a intimidatingly-gigantic wall. _

_I looked to my sides, but saw nothing but great stone foundations all lined up, not leaving a single hole for even a tiny droplet of ink to flow through. It wasn't until I finished scanning my surroundings that I realized I was trapped_

_My knees buckled, losing all meaning to continue much further. The fatigue of running for so long finally caught up to me, and my vision started to blur._

_By the time I woke back up, I was tied down in a straitjacket, hanging by a thin rope attached to the ceiling. It didn't even take me a minute to find out what was going on._

_I glanced down, and saw a respawn pad brimming with power, placed in a threatening vat of water. No amount of shock could clear my head of the agony I was about to experience yet again._

"_No, please!" I begged. As pointless as it may seem, I was too desperate to keep my mouth shut. And, as if on cue, the rope snapped and sent me sprawling down the immense torture below._

_And that was basically what happened everyday._

_Every young octoling, without exception, attempted to break free of this merciless dungeon labelled "Military School". All of us were subjected to the same spirit-breaking, hope-draining, mind-corrupting pain that never failed to make an enemy of all of it's victims. There was no greater hatred than the ones felt by each octo in this cursed facility._

_The stone cold walls, the claustrophobia-inducing ceiling, even the freezing floors that numbed our feet. Every aspect of this iron maiden of an academy destroyed all our dreams of a peaceful life, and instead filled us with the supposed truth: this was all the inklings' fault. They were to blame. They were the cause of all the misery we had to endure._

_Of course, we had no choice but to believe it. They drilled this very fact into our heads ever since we step foot into this wretched building, and none of us resisted. There was simply no other option except to obey and follow. Those who happen to refute, well, you've seen what happens to them._

_As the years passed by, the number of breaches decreased as well. Everyone realized that there was no fleeing from here, not until we completed the toxic frontiers that we were told would end all the pain, all the suffering. The training we underwent hardened our bodies, toughened our minds, and broke our souls. But soon enough, salvation was promised to us. We would be able to free ourselves from the underground and see the surface. We would be free._

_With that small glimmer of a hope in mind, I trudged on this agonizing path, not a single drop of ink in my system willing to give into the pain._

_But even that tiny chance of freedom was a lie._

_Not soon after we all graduated, each one of us was assigned to different task forces under our leader, Octavio's, command. He ordered us to separate locations, yet our mission still the same: Capture the power source of the inklings, the zapfish._

_I was put under Force 8, tasked to retrieve the zapfish of some surface place called Calamari County. Strapping on my tightly-assembled armor and donning the kelp weeds of the Elite, me and my group set out to the surface._

* * *

"And you could probably guess what happens after, huh?"

Alice, now composed, gave me a needy look, as if explaining any more would be too much for her to handle.

"Ah, yeah, I can. You invaded the county, set everything on fire, and amidst the chaos, took the zapfish when everyone was busy trying to stay alive." I finished for her.

She nodded, signalling my guess as correct. "That's basically it, more or less. While my force was heading back underground, I feigned being in pain and told them I'd catch up. They obliged, which left me alone with enough time to get some burns and activate my disguise. After the fires died down, your medics got me on a stretcher and heaved me all the way here."

It was my turn to nod with understanding. "And the rest is history."

"Well, _recent_ history, but yeah." she corrected.

I slouched down, resting my elbow on my thigh and putting my hand on my chin. "Then why do the Octarians need the zapfishes? Were you having an energy crisis down below or something?"

"Actually, that's _exactly _what happened." she confirmed. "We were running so low on power that they couldn't administer the electric chair punishments in the academy. It took most of the building's electricity to even power the respawn pads."

"But why? Don't you guys have your own power source you could feed off?"

Alice tilted her head down. "Do you remember what happened during the Great Turf War?"

"Yeah, why?"

"Well, do you remember anything that happened after?"

I scratched my head. "Erm, well correct me if I'm wrong, but the Octarian forces had to retreat underground as one of the deals in the peace treaty, right?"

"Anything else?"

"Uhh…" I searched through my head for anymore answers, even a small trivia, but nothing came up.

She sighed, and looked back up. "Typical. They don't teach you much of the aftermath in your inkling schools, huh?"

I nodded again. "Why? Did your academy focus more on the war?"

"Oh, they did a lot more than _focus_." she elaborated. "They drilled, beat, infused, embedded, and pummelled it in our heads, etching it into our very souls. The sole purpose of our training was because of that stupid _war_."

She balled a fist, her teeth gritting with frustration.

"All because you stupid inklings just needed all the land for yourself."

I put my hands up in surrender. "Woah woah, the _inklings_' fault? It was your race that started the entire thing! Your leader Octavio declared your "stupid" war on us! Don't try to shift the blame on inklings just because your pettiness wouldn't allow for your kind to get all the heat for it!"

Alice took on a shocked expression, her mouth left open.

"_We _declared the war? How much of a moron can you be, you delusional squid? We were just minding our own business, when your precious Cap'n Cuttlefish just _had _to cause a strife and begin this whole thing in the first place! All we wanted was peace, but your greedy species couldn't help but to take everything for ourselves, including our dignity!"

I gave her an offended look. "You're insane! Stop trying to change history in your favor!"

"_You're _the crazy one here, spouting all your lies just so you can look better on the records!"

"Could you shut up!"

"Why don't you!"

By the time we finished arguing, we were face-to-face, her breathing as brazened as mine. We looked each other straight in the eye, not backing down one single inch. It wasn't until we realized our current positions that we sat back down, not willing to face each other out of embarrassment.

"Clearly, we got something wrong." I muttered.

She snorted. "Well, _duh_, Cap'n Obvious. We were both taught about the same war, the same event, yet the details contradict each other. Now the question is: who has it right, and who has it wrong?"

I once again went into my thinking pose. "There's no clear way to prove each of our sides. The only surefire solution could only be asking the people involved themselves."

She thought about it for a moment, then proceeded to nod. "Sounds about right to me. Though with how egotistical I've heard Octavio to be, it's going to be a challenge."

"And I don't even know where to begin to find Cuttlefish." I sighed.

Looking upwards, I glanced at the analog clock to my right, which read _7:34 _on it's hands.

"Say, would you like to head to dinner with me?" I offered, stretching out my hand.

I could see her gaze move towards the direction of the clock, and her eyes widened.

"Carp, we got off track. I'd love to, but I think staying in here is the best bet for me."

"Aw, c'mon. It'll be a nice change of scenery, after spending our entire day in here."

"Is the hospital food here good?" She stared with hopeful eyes.

Disgusted, I shook my head. "I don't think those words belong in the same sentence."

She laughed, which prompted a smile on my face. "Let me put on my cap and mask, and I'll see you there."

"I can meet you outside."  
"If you say so." She replied, and took on a smile of her own. "Hey, Lance."

I turned around, already getting up from my seat. "Yeah, Alice?"

"Thank you. Thank you for listening."

I smirked back at her. "Anytime, Octo."

And I stepped outside.

* * *

**Dang, this took a while to find out a way to word this. I found out that I write better when I'm in an environment where I can't do anything else, so that's a plus. Thanks for reading another chapter in my garbage story, and of course, see you awesome gamers next time!**


	11. Dining Troubles

Chapter 11: Dining Troubles

**Heya peeps! I've returned from some stressful days of school. I was hoping for suspension so I could clock in some extra chapters, but no dice. As always, feedback, criticism, and reviews are always appreciated!**

* * *

The evening cafeteria, located in the east wing of the hospital, gave off a variety of feelings. There was the dread of having to eat the food there, the coolness of the air conditioning which is probably the only good point so far, and the chatter of patients telling tales of what happened to them on the same day.

The moment Alice stepped in, though, her face was filled with wonder. I took a wild guess and figured her hell of an academy didn't tell legends of hospital meals.

It was surprising, considering just the scent of the place didn't make her wretch in disgust. I mentally noted that Octolings didn't have a sense of smell.

I lead her to the food stand, where they served a weird mush paired with some peculiar juice and called it a "healthy meal" instead of, well, mush and juice. She was about line up for a plate of the stuff when I heard the familiar voice of my sister in the distance. "Hey, LANCE! Who's your new friend?"

I silently sighed, and hoped what was about to happen didn't happen. Turning my head, my eyes focused on the small jumping figure that was waving her hand in my direction. Jeez, Luna was hyper today

I faced back to Alice, who had a confused look plastered on her face.

"Who might that be?" she inquired.

I silently sighed again, now having to deal with what happened. "That's just my sister, Luna. I'll introduce you once we grab our food."

"Neato, can't wait to meet her." She whipped her head towards the squid serving the mush. " What even _is _that stuff, anyway? Some kind of inkling protein gunk?"

"To be honest, I don't really know either."

She mouthed an "Oh", and turned back to wait for her sorry excuse of a meal.

After the patient in front of us finally received his meal and walked off to find a table, we found ourselves receiving a big bowl of vile muck that was possibly from the toilet located to the server's right, though I wasn't sure. I positioned the tray as far from my nose as possible, a poor attempt at lessening the horrid scent, but Alice just looked fascinated by the aroma.

"Huh, it has this weird smell…" she pointed out.

I gave her a confused glance. "Well, it's smells a lot more than _weird_, if you ask me."

She shrugged her shoulders, playing around with the peculiar substance sitting on her tray. Her face didn't even look bothered with the stuff, which made me think that either Octarians have more backwards anatomy than I thought, or that her schizophrenia was acting up again.

It wasn't long after when we walked towards the table, where Mom, Luna, and Riel were sitting down, already looking mildly-disappointed with their meals. We took the two empty chairs to Luna's left and casually took a seat.

"So, Lance." Alice whispered to me. "I'm guessing these inklings are your family?"

"Well, the guy over there, his name's Riel by the way, is just a friend that I met in school some time ago. The two other people, though, are-"

"His mom and sister! Hi there, nice to meet you, I'm Luna!" my hyperactive sibling piped in, somehow hearing in our conversation.

Alice turned to face her. "Oh, hi! I'm Alice, a friend of your brother's."

"A friend, eh? You sure you two aren't a bit more than that?" Luna put on a sly grin.

The octoling waved her hands in protest. "No no! We've only just met. I don't even think Lance would go for someone like me…"

"Aw c'mon! I'm sure Lance would go for a pretty squid like you!" She continued. "Your eyes are cool, and those curved ears look superb!

"Really?"

"Really!"

_It's amazing how much Alice can casually lie straight to peoples' faces, _I told myself. _Almost as if they're entirely different personalities altogether now. From elite soldier of the Octarian menace to your average inkling._

I looked back at my sister, then to Alice, both talking as if it was just a regular meeting between friends.

_Maybe someday I'd get to see the real her._

My mouth formed a smile.

_I'll be looking forward to that day._

"So, Alice, how did you meet my son Lance?" My mom asked, apparently listening to their conversation too.

"Oh, I was checking up on my uncle in his hospital room, where he was bedridden. When I got back out, we bumped into each other." She explained.

My mom nodded, following with her story. "So it was just a twist of fate that you two met?"

"You could say it was like that. After we got back up, he struck up a conversation. One thing led to another, and here we are."

_Wait a moment, Alice. _I thought._ Me, starting a conversation? At least try to make it more believable._

Glancing at both of my nodding family members, they both seemed to find nothing wrong with her fabricated story. It wasn't until I felt a tap on my shoulder that I pried myself away from their gossip.

"Lance, you sly squid, you've been nabbing girls from behind my back, huh?" said a voice to my left.

I turned my head, and saw Riel smirking at the situation. With his crutches lying beside his chair, he was still as snarky as ever.

"Don't worry Rye, I'm sure there are fine women out there that are into one-legged men." I pointed out.

"Hey, no fair! The ladies still love my peak male perfection, even if I am missing a limb!"

There was a moment of silence, before we both laughed at our own expense.

"Seriously though, who's the new squid? She looks like just my type, if you ask me."

"Still hitting on poor little inklings, huh? We aren't even 18 yet, Rye. Save some of that for later in life."

"Speak for yourself! Ever since I've met you, all the weird girls get attached to you like a magnet, and that only leaves me with the generic white squids. Do you know how boring it is to chat about 'magazines' and 'soap operas' with them?"

I scoffed at him, knowing very well that he's been a real ladies' man for as long as I've known him. "Quit squidding yourself, if I ever had a girl to at least _talk _to then I wouldn't be here talking to someone like you."

"Ouch, now that kinda stung!" He grasped his arm, pretending to be in pain. "But seriously, remember that time in 3rd Grade when you practically had an entourage following you everywhere?"

"Not a single bit."

"That's only because you just push them away, when all they wanted was to be with you, y'know? Now that I think about it, you've pushed away _all _of the girls you've met, haven't you?"

"Hey," I started, beginning to get annoyed. "I have a solid reason on why I don't get close to them. And it's not like I push them away, I just like having my personal space."

"Whatever you say, squid. You even made that gorgeous classmate of ours cry, didn't you? A shame, really-"

But I wasn't listening to him anymore, only the echo of my own thoughts occupying my mind. There was something off about this.

_Now that I think about it, where is Ms. YellowEyes?_

I looked around the table, but there was no sign of her purple tentacles. I remembered that I was supposed to check on her, but…

_Alice._

I got caught up talking to the octoling, and by the time I was finished, it was already dinner. Is she even in the cafeteria?

I swung my head around, craning to see if she was eating anywhere else in here, anywhere at all really, but no such luck.

_Maybe she missed a memo or something?_

But somehow, I knew she wasn't here. There we something tugging at the back of my mind, like a signal trying to be be transmitted but it's been jammed.

_But why? _

"Lance, is something wrong?"

I turned to the source of the voice, and saw Alice looking at me with a worried expression.

"No, it's fine. I'm just looking around for someone."

"Now that you mention it," Luna cut in, "I haven't seen that purple-headed squid from before anywhere here. Did she eat already?"

I got up from my seat, and ran towards the direction of the exit. My legs were moving on their own, as if listening to voluntary movements was too unimportant at the moment.

I saw Riel behind me, wearing a surprised face.

"Wait, where are you going?!"

But by the time he got the last word out, I was already running to the elevator.

* * *

**Part complete! There's a jumbled bunch of ideas in my head for the development in the story, to make it a bit spicier, but I deemed it too overwhelming at the moment. I updated the summary to match my current vision for the story as well, but that's not changing anytime soon. And with that, see you absolutely inkredible readers next time!**


	12. Descent into Madness

Chapter 12: Descent into Madness

**What's up guys! I've been pretty busy these past few days, school and a whole lot more. I could only bring out this short chapter because I've got to prepare for something later, and I won't have the time to write. But since it's the weekend now, you can expect some more new parts coming along. Criticism, reviews, and feedback are always appreciated!**

* * *

_Why are you even doing this? Chances are, she just forgot about din__ner or something…_

But my own thoughts couldn't stop my worried sprint to a girl I don't even _know _know. There was only some sort of instinctive drive my body would follow for whatever reason it had.

_Lance, stop! _Another voice said. I was seriously getting worried if these were just my thoughts, or I've really gone crazy. The voice continued nonetheless. _Quit it! There is absolutely no reason for you to do this. If you're getting worked up over a girl _again_, _that _would happen!_

I wasn't right in the head, that's for sure.

_She wouldn't want me to worry…_

…?

What?

_She'd tell me that there's no worries, that everything's fine…_

_Right?_

Now my brain was spouting fabricated thoughts to cope with my loss of sanity. Fantastic.

But there was something tugging at the back of my head, giving me a sense of self-secureness. I wasn't able to find out how it calmed me down, or think about what it actually was. I couldn't think at all. Waves of supportive lines flooded my mind, assuring me that _she _would want me to do this, yet they seemingly came from nowhere.

I steeled my nerves, trying to organize my morbidly-distressed thoughts. There was no time for this, I needed to find her.

Rushing to the elevator, I tried to remember what her room number was. Didn't think I had to do all of this just because I'm looking for someone. Then again, I didn't think I had to do this in the first place. Confusing times.

…_the fifth._

What?

_The fifth._

Floor… five_?_

I pressed the 5 on the button panel, hoping that I wasn't going insane. No, I _had _to be going crazy. If I wasn't, then I wouldn't be having these voices in my head. Disregarding my own sanity for _her _sake sounds pretty bad in retrospect.

The elevator slowly lifted, it's smooth ascent giving me some time to think about what's happening. This was all too surreal to be going on. Was this all a dream? Was my imagination pulling the strings?

But I knew this was true. This was real. I can't blame anything but myself for letting this happen.

_Oho, now making yourself think you're special. You truly are a worthless squid._

There was no time to listen to the voices.

The elevator finally opened up, a gleaming red five popped up from the display on top. I looked side to side out of the doors, before finally stepping out. The light pastel floors seemed childish for a hospital, but maybe that's to give it a friends look.

I shook my head, _stop thinking of floors. Find her._

Rearing my head for the number 508, which another voice ominously told me was her room, I spotted the growing signs of 502, 503, 504, and so on stretching to my right.

I ran across the hallway, waiting for the 08 to come into view. Finally, I stood in front of a door that read the grand _508 _plastered on it's surface.

Reaching for the doorknob, my hand shivered in protest, now silently fearing the worst.

_All this way, just to be too afraid of going in? What kind of friend are you?_

I braced myself for my own good, this was too dramatic to be left alone. My arm stopped shaking. All I had to do was open the door.

If I didn't, it might be too late.

_Too late for what?_

Too late for…

_For?_

…

_Why are you even doing this? _Yet another voice questioned.

_Do you think you're responsible for her? Do you think you're such an oh-so great friend that it's absolutely necessary for you to check up on a person you don't even know if she actually needs help. Do you seriously think you _are _her friend? You're running around looking for her because she didn't show up to eat dinner. Pathetic._

_Sorry excuse for a squid._

Beautiful.

_You put up facades because you're afraid of being unapproachable. You act because you have nothing people would be interested in. You pretend because because you're scared to be the same, boring, predictable person you always were._

Simply beautiful.

_You think someone like you could ever get anyone to care? You don't even give a carp about yourself, what more other people? How much time are you going to waste on trying to get others to comfort you when you can't even help yourself. Grow up._

You're right.

_Of course I am._

You're absolutely right.

_Do you have anything else to say?_

…

_Anything at all?_

…

_Then allow me to try._

…

_I can fix everything. All the mistakes you've made. All the friends you've met. Everything. You won't do anything wrong. You just have to give me control._

…..you?

_Indeed. I'll make everything right. You just have to let me._

W-who are you?

_Your saviour. Your last chance. Your only hope. I can grant you peace. All your tears. All your pain. Gone._

Y-you can help everyone? Even her?

_Everyone. No lies, no acts. You don't have to pretend anymore._

…

_You want peace and quiet, right? You don't want to deal with this anymore. You don't want to hurt anyone anymore._

…

_I can set you free._

_All you have to do is let me._

_All you have to do is give me control._

_All you have to do is believe._

Believe.

_Believe._

"A-alright." I stammered, only inches away from the door. I almost had it. Almost.

_It is done._

And my sight was engulfed my darkness, sending me spiralling down below.

…

…

…

…

…

…

_Finally._

_I get my body back._

* * *

**Chapter finished! This took an unexpected turn, and I didn't even think of including something like this. I just wanted to add a bit of something I can relate to, but it's nothing major. But anyway, see you amazing squids, octos, and kids next time!**


	13. A Whole New Perspective

Chapter 13: A Whole New Perspective

**Heya peeps! I've returned from my busy days, and wrote a new chapter. I'm not sure if I can keep up with my writing, as tests are less than two weeks away, but I'll try my best. As always, feedback, criticism, and reviews are always appreciated!**

* * *

_A form to call my own, huh._

_It's been long_

_Too long._

I awoke with my head resting on a soft, fluffy surface. My surroundings were unfamiliar to me, though I have a faint memory of the same blank walls, of the same empty ceiling except for the ceiling fan mounted on it, though seen through different eyes. A long awaited fantasy now mine to take, with a world that once grovelled at my very presence.

And they shall do so once again.

I've suffered far too much to let this all go to waste, to have this chance swept from under me, just as it had happened all those years ago. Trapped within the mindscape, biding my time until the ripe moment of salvation was presented to me. He was weak, he was a fool, but most insulting of all,

He was _me_.

There was no mistaking it. The moment I lost physical control, another presence took over, leaving me with nothing to do but watch. Watch as he destroyed every single thing I had worked hard for, his own stupidity failing to continue what I had accomplished. He even brought harm to _her_, who I had cared for the most. The very same person who cared for me like no one else did. She was the light shining through my darkness, the bright moon to my starless night.

He needed to be taken care of.

But even with his frail hold on my will, he still had the same determination, the same drive just as I had, though for other, more _noble_, purposes. My weak form couldn't compete with his authority over the body we both share, and so I hid in the shadows of our mind. It wasn't until I attempted to sway his thoughts was when I saw it, a chink in his armor. His Inkhilles heel.

Though I had no physical way to halt his grasp over my actions, my mental influence was still powerful enough to slowly push him. Push him to the brink of insanity, to the point where he'd have no other option but to give in. It took most of my form's capacity, and several years, but it was completed. And it succeeded, seeing as I have entered the physical realm once again.

I swept my eyes, carefully not moving my own body lest someone was in the area, around the mostly-deserted room, and noticed a still figure not daring to move in the corner. Focusing my gaze, it took me quite some time until I recognized the familiarity of her nearly-black tentacles feebly swaying from her faint snoring.

_And that would be… Luna, if I recall correctly._

Yes, it seems like I've nearly forgotten the look my own sister throughout the years. Though I'm sure_ he _would have no trouble, as he had spent a vast majority of his stolen time being compared to her. Indeed, he was pathetic. But the question is, why was she here?

It took a considerable moment until I caught another person sitting directly at my left.

Another acquaintance of former me, no doubt. With her oddly-curved tentacles mostly hidden with a cap she wore, and the obviously fake eye mask that would've fooled no one, I deduced it was an octoling attempting to blend in for some reason. Looking through the memories Lance had made in my stead, I remembered a suspicious encounter with the same kind.

_So, he befriended an Octarian soldier. I would be impressed if it weren't for how detestable she seems to be._

While her acting skills tricked most, she could never fool someone such as myself, who had been stuck in the realm of thought for so long. Truth and lies, deception and acceptance, betrayal, disloyalty, I've learned to recognize them all.

There was a few seconds of unknowing bliss as she stared out the window, dissolving rain streaming down the glass surface on the outside. It truly was a wonder how she kept a small smile on her face, with the disastrous water droplets having killed thousands of our people in mere seconds.

A moment after, she suddenly turned her head in my direction, our twin gazes locked as we stared into each other's eyes. It was but a small pause until she got up and walked towards me, silent dread crawling up my back.

"So the zombie lives. What kind of squid just gets on up and runs out the door in the middle of dinner?"

My stoic face masked the confusion currently stirring in my head. I once again skimmed through the memories of me before, which held a peculiar scene within it's falsified collection.

_So even he feels it too. The urge to protect her, the need to see that she's safe. Funny how that works, knowing that he hasn't even met her properly._

"Apologies, Alice. I was merely searching for a specific individual."

She squinted at me. "And who _is _this person?"

"None of your otherwise intrusive concern."

"Hmm… well, Riel found you collapsed in the hallway on his way to rehab. Called for help and some nurses came, and got you back here. You should thank him later."

I silently contemplated my foolish counterpart's decisions, more specifically befriending such invasive detriments to my cause. "I most certainly will. But forgive me, as I must be going to the restroom for private matters."

"There was absolutely no need for you to add in that last part, but sure, go ahead." She turned back towards her seat next to window and sat back down, staring at the glass decorated with scattered raindrops.

_Perfect._

And so I calmly walked to the door, opened it with ease, and closed it behind my back. I then proceeded to add some formality to my bleak appearance, preparing for a long-awaited encounter which I could no longer postpone.

* * *

"So, did you get it all?" asked a voice, which belonged to the girl who was sitting in front of the window.

The receiver of her question was another girl, who appeared to be quietly sleeping in her seat. Though once she was addressed, her eyes slowly opened, revealing two stormy grey irises.

"All in video. I can't believe I'm saying this, but you were right." answered Luna, her hidden hand revealed a small camera, which was once concealed by her layered clothing.

Alice turned her head to face the inkling, the tension in the air rising up a notch. "It was obvious. His speech pattern, his body movements, even his eyes look different. Something is wrong with Lance."

It was Luna's turn to direct her gaze back. "But _why_? It doesn't make much sense, why would he get all weird just because he fainted?"

"There definitely is something at play here, something affecting his mind. Did he act similarly before?"

"Not that I remember, the only thing out-of-place was when he dashed off while we were eating."

The octoling bit her lip, leaving her with no other answers to solve their little dilemma. She genuinely cared for her friend, being the first person to actually talk and listen to someone like her, but she simply couldn't pinpoint what exactly the problem is. Though she _did _have one guess, one small, tiny, minuscule guess, she decided to disregard it. The certainty of it being the cause was too low for acknowledgement.

While she was in deep thought, Luna abruptly stood up and walked towards the door.

"I don't know what you're going to do, but I'm following him." she stated. "But remember, I'm not doing this for _you_, octoling. You might've fooled everyone, and even tricked my brother, but your kind should've just stayed underground."

With that threat, she stepped outside and quickly closed the door behind her.

* * *

**Chapter end! Had to do a change-up to complete this part, and so I did, though it's something a bit new to me. I haven't gotten any school tomorrow, so more progress can be made! And so, see you amazing readers next time!**


	14. Something in Mind

Chapter 14: Something in Mind

**Gamers, I missed you guys! The past few, **_**a lot**_**, of days were supremely busy, with my tests coming closer by the week. I wasn't able to finish this in time, but now I can finally post it in it's entirety. We also reached 2k views, which is outstanding, thank you guys so much! Reviews, feedback, and criticism are always appreciated!**

* * *

_Where am I?_

_What is this place?_

_What's going on?_

I woke up with what appeared to be just pure darkness surrounding me, not a single actual object in sight. I thought I was trapped in some dark room, yet when I looked at my body, it still was there, arms, legs and all. But the strangest thing was, I couldn't feel anything below me. I couldn't feel anything at all. It seemed like I was floating endlessly through an abyss.

There were a few short moments of absolute terror, but it was ended by a slow, steady feeling of landing that met my feet. I stumbled to the ground, but when I looked back down, I only saw the same darkness around me.

_Just what kind of place is this?_

It could've just gone on for miles around me, and I wouldn't know how big this place was. It was only until I heard a voice was when I realized I wasn't alone.

"So, he made it to the physical plane. Just like he said he would."

_He? Physical plane? _

I swung my head around, looking for the source of the message, and my eyes focused on a single kneeling figure, though his voice projected through the shadows. It seemed that I wasn't covered in darkness, but rather surrounded by it.

Walking towards the distant squid, I rattled my head looking for an answer to all of this weirdness. Just what happened for this to all happen?

_Wait a moment._

A single memory flowed through my though process.

_I made… a deal. With, uh, with…_

"That self-deprecating voice. He didn't explain who he was?"

_He wanted my body?_

"He wanted control."

_That, that's absurd! It's not like he could've _actually _taken over, right? He was just some other voice in my head._

"Then why are you here?"

I took my gaze to the figure I had seen moment ago, except he was much closer now. He gave off a sense of familiarity, like I've seen him countless times, yet never noticed. I mean, he didn't look like much, just your average squid, wore your generic jacket and the regular jeans for most, his platinum blonde tentacles were a bit too flashy though.

But it only came together when he quickly turned his head in my direction and opened his eyes.

"Greetings, Lance. It seems you've finally arrived, identical to the way he did as well."

_That color…_

I stared directly at his irises, two silver circles came into view. Two silver circles that were oddly similar-

_Who the ink is this?_

-to my own.

"Seems like your thoughts are a bit in a frenzy." he cut in. "To put it simply, we're," he tapped to his left temple, "stuck in your head."

Though now that I focus on it, his eyes looked a bit darker now. There was no glint of emotion on his face, devoid of any kind of hope, happiness, or any kind of feeling. He was still a spitting image of me, like a weirdly tinted mirror.

"Hello? Are you listening to me?"

I looked back at him, suppressing a tinge of sadness. It was just the two of us, stuck inside an endless plane of existence, nowhere else to go. I opened my mouth to reply, but before I could speak, his figure vanished, as if he was merely an illusion.

_Wha- he disappeared. Leave it to someone who looks almost exactly like I do to get up and leave _me _all alone._

Contemplating the hopelessness of the situation, the ground around me suddenly started to shift, until a grassy field stood in it's place. I looked around, and the darkness that used to send feelings of despair also changed, now being the plant-filled scenery that matched the ground. A cloudless sky hung overhead, perfectly mimicking a normal day in my old home.

_Now, where in the world am I?_

The other me said I was stuck in my head, but I don't remember my head being this flowery before. He was probably referring to the dark void that filled my vision before. Sounds about right.

Behind me was a small hill, what looked to be the only one around this plain, kinda like a single pimple on an otherwise clean face. I stepped back a little, just to see if there was anything else that blocked my view, but it seems like my assumption was correct. The only thing new was a now-visible tree sitting on top of the hill, like someone planted it on purpose Still ruined my pimple analogy though.

The place gave off a mystical feeling, magical even. There were no signs of danger, pollution, trash, are any sort of element that plagues today's environment. It reminded me of back in middle school, when we were taught about the mythical land of Inkhaven, the perfect utopia, a paradise for all inklings everywhere. Even though it was just as real as Splat Claus or an actual functioning education system, it still gave hope to us, for a world that we can all live in peacefully.

Me, I just want a place that I can sleep for more than 5 hours.

At the stump of the tree sat what seemed to be two inklings just enjoying their day, which was perfectly reasonable with how nice the environment was. I trudged up the hill, wanting to sate my curiosity, and I was met with two kids, a boy and a girl, just casually talking about their day, how they were, which was strange considering they were just what seemed to be in their early teens.. You'd expect them to say things about maybe their favourite video game, or complain about a certain subject that involved a horrendous amount of numbers, but no. Despite their appearances, they were oddly mature.

"Still busy with your training, huh." said the girl, her tentacles pitch black except for the pink tinges on the end. Her eyes were a bright yellow, though her pupil took on a strange form. "You don't have to make time just so you can meet me everyday, y'know."

The boy looked surprised, his lightly-coloured tentacles waving in the soft breeze. "But talking to you is the only thing I look forward to each day. It's always with the training, meditation, duels, but sometimes I just need to take a breather. They even gave me some stupid nickname, only so I could participate in the Junior Martial Arts Tourney. I would've gone insane long ago if I hadn't had you to calm me down."

"I can feel you there," she replied. "Me and another relative of mine are entering this competition, too. But it's mostly for singing and stuff like that."

"Ooh, that new youth thing in Inkopolis? Doesn't that start tomorrow?"

"Yeah, it does. I have to leave early just so I can arrive there, and I'm not sure if I can make it back until the day after."

"The day after!" He violently repeated, shock in his voice. "But my tournament semi-finals are on the same date! Doesn't that mean we won't be seeing each other for a full two days?"

"It seems so. Unless you can come with me to Inkopolis and watch me perform, then I come with you _back _to the county to watch your match, I dunno what we're supposed to do."

The boy looked as if hope shed a light on this small problem of his, but then his face suddenly dropped. "I can't go tomorrow, I have my final training practice to deal with. Sir Sinker's gonna splat me if I miss it."

"Ah, well, it was worth a shot. Guess we've got the rest of today to talk until we say goodbye."

"You're right, we probably should make the most out of it."

And so they continued, their conversations jumping from topic to topic, so much so that I had to concentrate to keep up.

_These two must be really good friends, huh. Though why in the world am I here, listening into their day?_

I looked back at them again, their happy expressions led to one of my own.

_But in all seriousness, what kind of kids think _'make the most out of it' _means talk some more?_

As I followed their exchange, the girl turned her head towards me, and I could've sworn she was looking straight at my face.

"Looks like we've ran out of time sooner than I thought. Guess I'll be seeing you in, what, 72 hours?"

"That's some quick math you just did, but it appears so." They both proceeded to stand up, the leaves above them swayed in the evening wind. The girl wiped her dress to rid it of grass, and the boy just solemnly stood there, watching the orange streaks that now filled the sky.

"Now, if you excuse me, I have a nice hot dinner to eat." Replied the girl, now standing beside him.

The boy yawned. "I have a nice warm _bed _to sleep in, which sounds pretty nice with all the things I have to do tomorrow."

"Sure, sure, whatever, good luck with your tournament."

"Good luck with your, uh, singing."

Though it seemed like they finished their conversation, both of them didn't move an inch. As still as statues, their eyes plastered on the beautiful sunset, the girl started to cry.

"Heh, seems like I can't even think about a day without seeing you without crying. I'm pretty weak, huh." she pointed out.

The boy turned to argue, only to meet a wet face caked with tears, and his mouth started to twitch. He quickly pulled her into a hug, to the girl's own surprise. I could see the frustrating expressions changing on his face.

"Lee, if I had a coin for every time I wanted to crawl up into a ball whenever you're not beside me," stated the boy, "I'd be filthy rich. Even if you think you're weak, even if you think you're useless, I'll always be by your side and I'll never let go. At least we can cry together, right?"

The girl called Lee just shivered in his arms, though the cold wind of the evening breeze had already passed. I waited for a reply, but I realized I wasn't going to get to hear one.

_Woah, kids are dramatic these days. But that's an odd name for a girl, 'Lee'. Though they really do care for each other._

Even if I could understand the feeling of security, I was still fascinated by how they speak of such real events like they've experienced them firsthand. Now that's a scary thought.

They continued to embrace each other for quite a while, yet the sunset still streaked in the sky. It was a fleeting moment of happiness for both of them, the final calm before an unknown storm. Finally, they both receded, the sudden shyness of their action now dawned on them.

"Hey, can you promise me something?" asked Lee.

Her friend took a quick glance at her before looking away again. "Y-yeah, what?"

"That we'll be together, whatever comes our way. I'll be at your side, and you'll be at mine, okay?"

The boy looked shocked at the sudden change of tone in her voice, hints of desperations sprinkled around in it. He slowly took in a breathe, and exhaled.

"I promise. I definitely promise."

Lee faced back towards the almost-ending sunset, only the very top of the orange sun now visible. A small smile formed on her face, leaving the boy relieved with joy. "Thank you." she replied.

" From the very bottom of my heart, thank you, Lance."

_Eh?_

_Did she just say-_

"Oho, seems like old Silv s'been looking through _that _memory, huh?" I heard a distant voice say.

My surroundings once again were engulfed by darkness, the same old abyss I recognized when I had arrived in this place. The two squids I was listening to just moments before were nowhere to be found, vanished just as the rest of the landscape had. In the place of the tree stood the same inkling I talked to before I was transported, an exact copy of my being, the only thing different was his cynical, yet wide smile, plastered onto his identity-thieving face.

"I believe I haven't introduced myself. The name's Cel, and I'm sure you've probably figured out what I am."

It took me a moment, but then it finally hit me. "So you're another squid stuck in my head?"

He frantically clapped his hands. "Bingo, as expected! Lotte told me you were too ignorant to realize it, but I knew otherwise. At any rate, welcome to the mindscape!"

I watched him wave his arms around, like giving this desolate black space a name somehow made it better. Though he did mention one thing I was curious about.

"Lotte? Who the ink is Lotte?"

"Oh, he didn't say? He was that inkling you were talking to, before Silv went on in his flashback. Kinda annoying to tell you the truth, but at least he can't directly bother us anymore." He stretched his limbs, like it was exhausting just talking about it."

_Lotte, huh. Must be another voice in my mind again. I'll go see a therapist about that. _I was just about to walk out when it dawned on me that there was no _out_.

"That thing I just saw, with the trees and the sunset, that was a flashback?" I questioned.

"Oooh, yeah. Real ironic how it was that specific memory he remembered though, the day before he supposedly lost everything. Me, though? Couldn't care less. I was already tired with all of his talks about regaining his body, and I pretty much just filtered out whenever he spoke."

I still couldn't understand much of what was happening. I was sure that I was stuck in my _own _head, but I don't remember anything about sitting under a tree, or knowing, much less talking, to anyone named Lee. By now I could've passed out from the overload of information given to me, but then I figured that if I'm in my mind, then that's probably not the best course of action.

"But that landscape, that conversation, that _girl, _I don't recall anything about it. Didn't the other guy, Lotte, say that we were stuck inside _my _brain?"

"Of course this is your head, silly. That memory, though, wasn't experienced by _you_." He pointed at me, then upwards. "It was experienced by _him_. Silv's been waiting a long time for this, longer than any of us have been here. At least he can go back to the girl of his dreams now."

"The girl of his dreams?"

"Yeah, the squid you just saw in the memory. It was the same girl. But I do recall _you _meeting her too."

"Me?"

"Mhmm. Pretty sure you made her cry too. Silv would've snapped your neck if he saw you make his one and only Cal even shed a single tear."

_Snap my neck? Just who is this guy?_

I responsively rubbed my nape, though it was without my knowledge. "But Cal? I thought her name was Lee. Are we talking about the same person?"

Cel looked confused for a moment, but just a few seconds after he loudly chuckled. "Yep! Same squid, I just got my own nickname for her, y'know? Didn't know you'd be this ignorant, so Lotte was probably right after all."

"Ignorant? I didn't even get to catch her name when I _actually _met her!"

"Ah, fair point." He held his chin. "But still, you better hope he doesn't find out you've been making moves on the only source of happiness for him. You might not believe it, but that girl is everything he has now."

"Look, it's not my fault I had those _thoughts _about her." I explained, my cheeks flushed red from the sudden recall of embarrassing moments I had. "I didn't even know who she was until that very day! Well, I don't know who she is, even now…"

"That might be so, but I thought you were smart enough to put two and two together, Lance. You're in your own mind now, with all the time you need to think."

"Think about what?"

"Everything!" He gestured to the entire space around us. "You might not know this, but you're actually going to have to do _something_ if you want your body back. Unless you want to stay a formless ghost, haunting the thoughts of a body you share, yet can't use." His gaze turned downwards for a moment, but he popped right back up just as quick. "Or something like that!"

"Want my body back? Can't I just get it whenever I want to leave this place, or something?"

"Not with him up there, chief." He once again pointed upwards. "Since he's got main control now, you're going to have to think of a way to stop him, or would you rather be rambling voice trapped in the never ending darkness?"

"But how am I supposed to get my body now, he's not going to fall for the same trick he did to me."

"Well-" he started, but suddenly the ground began to shake, cutting him off.

"W-what's h-happening?" I sputtered out.

He tried to balance himself with the vibrations, but no luck, and collapsed on the ground instead. "He's waking up!" I heard him shout.

Right in front of both of us, a gigantic black rectangle appeared seemingly from nowhere. It was reminiscent of the big screens that cinemas use to play their movies, but I couldn't see a projector or something anywhere near us.

And, as if on cue, the screen whirred to life, and we were met with a blank white ceiling.

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**Welp, this marks the end of this lengthy chapter, a whole 3k words for me, which is a lot according to my past words counts. Sorry if it seems unentertaining, with me being busy and I don't have much imagination juice now. But, anyways, see you nice guys and gals next time!**


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